SC20024 - Off-Street Electric Vehicle Charging

Kent County Council (KCC) and Medway Council are expecting to publish the Kent and Medway energy and low emission strategy which sets out our ambitions to be net carbon neutral by 2050. Within this strategy a series of actions are being developed to reduce carbon emissions and improve local air quality, with transport playing a major role. Electrification of transport is seen as an important step to reaching the targets and as such KCC is keen to facilitate the installation of a reliable, secure and affordable charging network across the county and Medway. The Transport Innovations Teams commissioned a report by CENEX, a leading low emission vehicle consultancy. The report identified that creating a series of charging ‘hubs’ across the region is the most effective way to increase Electric Vehicle (EV) take-up while avoiding the issues that arise from widespread installations across the highway network. This will likely incorporate Rapid charging with slower options to suit a range of use cases (such as overnight residential parking and long-stay park and ride locations) while accommodating future growth in vehicle battery capacity. KCC has been working closely with Medway and the Districts/Boroughs to identify a series of car park locations that could house charging infrastructure. The car parks are all owned and operated by the District/Borough and Medway Councils. KCC will act as facilitator to bring together multiple public bodies and intends to procure one countywide contract to install a large number of chargers across the region, providing an open charging network that is easy to access and does not prohibit use through membership requirements. A number of car parks have been identified and early dialogue with UKPN has taken place to establish the charging capacity of these sites. At this stage, no financial commitment has been identified or made to the project to install chargers, and the purpose of this opportunity is to explore supplier-funded or part-funded delivery models. The intention is to begin the formal process of finding an installation partner later this year with KCC acting as the facilitator and central point of communication. Contractors who wish to express an interest (EOI) must do so via the opportunity listed on the Kent Business Portal. The Council may then invite interested parties to confidential virtual meetings on 14 October 2020 to discuss this opportunity. Further literature and an agenda will be shared once these meeting have been arranged. A questionnaire may also be issued to aid our understanding for the current market climate. Organisations who do not express an interest in response to this PIN will not be precluded from applying to take part in the Council's chosen procurement strategy.